After my death our beloved Church abroad will break three ways ... first the Greeks will leave us as they were never a part of us ... then those who live for this world and its glory will go to Moscow ... what will remain will be those souls faithful to Christ and His Church.~St. Philaret of NY

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Metropolitan Vitaly of Blessed Memory

Memory Eternal

Our Metropolitan of Blessed Memory reposed on this day in 2006 after years of suffering greatly at the hands of those who were scheming to lead Rocor into the MP.

On the fifth anniversary of the repose of the Most Blessed Metropolitan Vitaly

At each panichida, we sing “His memory is from generation to generation.” But will many prayerfully remember the ever-memorable Metropolitan Vitaly on this Sunday, the very day of the fifth anniversary of his death?

The faithful sons of the Church Abroad will undoubtedly remember and raise up fervent prayers of thanksgiving concerning him.

The perpetrators of the betrayal, on the contrary, having finally stifled the voice of their conscience through persistent, constant falsehood, have henceforth directed their gaze and their thoughts in a completely different direction and do not want to remember the past. They have begun to live a new life. But it is possible that some among them, at the recollection of their deeds, experience the agonizing torment of conscience, that little voice of God that is put into each person, and, like Boris Godunov who shouted, "Keep away, keep away, child," they try to sweep aside the still recent past; but the face of the profaned Metropolitan and the memory of their iniquities from time to time do not give them rest.

And there is a third category of people: the mass of those who, on account of weakness, on account of spiritual negligence, on account of “obedience”, have followed the betrayers and thereby think that they do not bear responsibility or guilt for what has happened, concerning which they are profoundly mistaken. Let them not lull their conscience: they too, although to a lesser extent, have betrayed the Metropolitan and have betrayed their fathers and their past.

Metropolitan Vitaly was the last link connecting us to genuine Russia. He was the last hierarch in the world who was born in Tsarist Russia and who remembered how, as a ten year old boy together with the valiant White Army, he left forever the shores of Russia, which through his long life he bore in his heart. He was the last representative of those giants of spirit who created the special face, not comparable with anything else, of the Church Abroad. He was, as once wrote Metropolitan Agafangel, an “ikon of the Church Abroad”.

The fate of the reposed Metropolitan is in many ways similar to the fate of the Holy Tsar-Martyr. Indeed, just like him, he could say: “All around is treachery and cowardice and deceit.” Just as till now there are “woeful monarchists,” who denounce the Sovereign as allegedly not being in any way a victim, but the very first initiator of the revolution and of the collapse of Russia, since he abdicated the throne – yes, there are such cranks! – so too there are people without a conscience who assert that the Metropolitan himself was guilty in the breakdown of the Church Abroad, and that it was necessary to “remove” him from the office of First Hierarch in order to save the Church, just as it was necessary to “remove” the Sovereign in order to save Russia. The identical falsehood oozes both there and here. The First Hierarch and also the Tsar are not presidents of republics; they are not appointed directors of enterprises for a fixed period – they are the bearers of a special charism, and they are not “removed” as not wanted. They remain on the Throne until the time when the Lord calls them to Himself. But when, through force or deceit, they are forced to step down from the Throne, that is a very vile overthrow and a revolution, as took place in February 1917 and as occurred 10 years ago in 2001. Such overthrows cannot be blessed, since the driving force in these iniquities is always the same – treachery, wherein the devil serves as an advocate.

No one will dispute that Metropolitan Vitaly, by virtue of his advanced age and memory loss, could not sin and make mistakes, especially when he was intentionally led into error and his physical weaknesses were taken advantage of. But until his last breath, he remained faithful to the Idea, was unbending in defense of the Truth and uncompromising toward evil. The reposed Metropolitan bore a heavy cross during the last years of his earthly life; but like the Sovereign, he bore it completely without complaint. No one ever heard a single word of complaint, reproach or thirst for revenge. Never. Without complaint, with the greatest humility, he endured both mockery and attempts on himself. The only thing that he said was “ANATHEMA” three times to his tormentor, the unworthy “bishop” Michael Donskoi, who to this day by his presence defiles our Cathedral of the Exaltation of the Cross in Geneva.

The merciful Lord called him to Himself six months before the union with the MP. And so, his eyes did not see that greatest infamy, which was committed by those whom, in the majority of cases, he himself had elevated to the hierarchal dignity, seeing in them worthy defenders of the foundations of the Church Abroad. With bodily eyes he did not see, but with spiritual eyes he saw everything. And these emotional experiences were for him undoubtedly much more painful than physical ones.

By forgiving all and through submission to destiny and the will of God – let us not be afraid to say – he was raised to sanctity.

Let everyone think about this. There is still time for repentance. Metropolitan Vitaly was an “icon” and "guide". He showed and continues to show to each one the path of honor and truth, the path delineated by his three marvelous predecessors, Metropolitans Antony, Anastasy and Philaret. But will enough Christian conscience, or simply civic courage, be sufficient for each one who does not want to become finally like the despicable “Februaryists,” in order to stand firmly on this path?

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THE SISTER CHURCHES

The True Orthodox Churches of Romania, and Bulgaria, and with the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, and with the Synod in Resistance, are called by the Grace of the Lord to coexist in Mysteriological communion.

from §4 of “Schedule of Steps in the Union Process” Feb. 2014

VL AGAFANGEL PRAYER

Lord Jesus Christ, Holy Theotokos and all the Saints: keep our souls unharmed from the destructive influences of globalism, ecumenism, and sergianism, and give all of us the strength to endure the latest onset of persecution of the Church of Christ. Amen

QUOTE

"I have taken you in my arms, and I love you, and I prefer you to my life itself. For the present life is nothing, and my most ardent dream is to spend it with you... I place your love above all things, and nothing would be more bitter or painful to me than to be of a different mind than you.”

St. John Chrysostom

QUOTE

"If we have a good priest (or bishop), we give thanks to God. If a bad one, we endure him".

- old Russian saying

QUOTE

"And here is something to which I would like to draw your attention to – something about which very many do not think about. Father Archimandrite Constantine, whom probably many of you know, the reposed editor of the journal “Orthodox Rus’”, a profound Christian mind, considered that the most terrible among all the achievements of the communists was that the communists created their own false-church, a soviet church which they shoved onto the unfortunate people in place of the genuine Church which went underground into the catacombs. Do not think that I am exaggerating or that Father Constantine was exaggerating!

Once, in the year 1918, a Pan-Russian Church Council was held. At this Council, the entire Pan-Russian Church together with its first holy hierarch, Patriarch Tikhon anathematized, excommunicated from the Church not only the theomachists and godless ones themselves, but also all those who would collaborate with them."

~St. Philaret of NY

QUOTE

"To the Russians abroad, it has been granted to shine in the whole world with the light of Orthodoxy, so that other peoples, seeing their good deeds, might glorify our Father Who is in heaven, and thus obtain salvation for themselves. But if it does not perform this purpose and even abases Orthodoxy by its life, the Diaspora will have before itself two paths: either to be converted to the path of repentance, having acquired forgiveness through prayer to God and being reborn spiritually and to being capable of giving rebirth to our suffering homeland; or else being rejected by God and remaining in banishment, persecuted by everyone, until gradually it will degenerate and disappear from the face of the earth."

from Vladika John's report to the All-Diaspora Sobor in 1938

QUOTE

The apostasy of our times, to a degree unique in Christian history, is proceeding not primarily by false teachings or canonical deviations, but rather by a false understanding of Orthodoxy on the part of those who may even be perfectly Orthodox in their dogmatic teaching and canonical situation. A correct "Orthodoxy" deprived of the Spirit of true Christianity—this is the meaning of Sergianism, and it cannot be fought by calling it a "heresy," which it is not, nor by detailing its canonical irregularities, which are only incidental to something much more important.

- Russia's Catacomb Saints

QUOTE

Let it not be thought, however, that I affirm that it is necessary to prize every peace. For I know that there is a splendid disagreement and the most destructive unanimity. Yet one must love a good peace which has a good purpose: unity with God.

-St. Gregory the Theologian

QUOTE

... To pious Christians the fact that the world has fallen into godlessness is to them obvious, and they are ready to see it as an unfortunate historical inevitability ...

Professor Viktor Trostinkov

QUOTE

If you want to have assurance that you are saved, repent now that you are young and healthy and it is manifest that you left sin while you were still able to sin. But if you persevere in sin into your old age, why then you did not leave sin, but rather sin left you.

St. Nicodemus of the Holy Mountain

QUOTE

Live in peace not only with your friends, but also with your enemies; but only your personal enemies, and not the enemies of God.

St. Theodosius of the Kiev Caves

QUOTE

Judge not according to appearances, but judge righteous judgment.

St. John 7:24

QUOTE

"If Russia is not ressurrected, a new Golgotha threatens the whole world."

Priest Vladimir Evsukoff 1980†

QUOTE

A man who does not express a desire to link himself to the latest of the saints (in time) in all love and humility owing to a certain distrust in himself, will never be linked to the preceding saints and will not be admitted to their succession, even though he thinks he possesses all possible faith and love for God and for all His saints. He will be cast out of their midst, as one who refused to take humbly the place allotted to him by God before all time, and to link himself to that latest saint (in time) as God had disposed.

St. Symeon the New Theologian

QUOTE

SCOBA, to which world orthodoxy gives such great significance, reproaching us for not belonging to it, actually is in no way a canonical organ. The Russian Church Outside of Russia was invited to take part in these conferences; however, our Church refused to send representatives there after clergy of the Moscow Patriarchate were invited. "We never and nowhere will sit at one table with them; by this our spiritual communion with the Universal Church is not broken."

Archpriest George Grabbe 1969

QUOTE

"Let us always thank the Lord that we are in the Holy Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia, which throughout the 80 years of its existence has trodden the straight, royal path of God, without ever turning aside and losing its way."

QUOTE

The passions lying hidden in the soul provide the demons with the means of arousing impassioned thoughts in us. Then, fighting the intellect through these thoughts, they force it to give its assent to sin. When it has been overcome, they lead it to sin in the mind; and when this has been done they induce it, captive as it is, to commit the sin in action. Having thus desolated the soul by means of these thoughts, the demons then retreat, taking the thoughts with them, and only the spectre or idol of sin remains in the intellect. Referring to this our Lord says, 'When you see the abominable idol of desolation standing in the holy place (let him who reads understand)... (Matt 24:15). For man's intellect is a holy place and a temple of God in which the demons, having desolated the soul by impassioned thoughts, set up the idol of sin. That these things have already taken place in history no one, I think, who has read Josephus will doubt; though some say that they will also come to pass in the time of the Antichrist.

Philokalia

QUOTE

There are three things that impel us towards what is holy: natural instincts, angelic powers, and probity of intention. Natural instincts impel us, when, for example, we do to others what we would wish them to do to us (cf. Luke 6:31), or when we see someone suffering deprivation or in need and naturally feel compassion. Angelic powers impel us when, being ourselves impelled to something worthwhile, we find we are providentially helped and guided. We are impelled by probity of intention when, discriminating between good and evil, we choose the good.

Philokalia

QUOTE

The outward Gospel of social idealism is a symptom of loss of faith.

Fr. Seraphim Rose

QUOTE

Impurity of intellect consists first in having false knowledge, ...

Philokalia

QUOTE

Isn't Marx really the third of a trio with Darwin and Freud as a practical source in the war against revealed truth?

Fr. Seraphim Rose

Letters, 1972

QUOTE

QUOTE

To: ROCA members from the MP

"You have to understand that you have long been in a false church, which implants in its members' souls, a false spirituality, which in turn takes root and grows stronger and stronger, the longer a man stays in it."

Bishop Athanasius, 2014

QUOTE

Mankind has gone mad, and we see with horror the abyss into which it is being drawn. Let us lay aside every worldly care, and let us fall down in prayer and readiness for the dread Judgment of the Lord. Death will not come with bombs and poisons. Death has already come and take up residence with us and in us, and has made corpses of us, Mammon has overwhelmed this sinful world, which is dominated by Queen Science, Lucifer himself, which with one hand makes medicines and machines for man's foolish happiness and with the other terrorizes him by means of the bomb! Such is the sorry state of knowledge and the agony of the world through and through. Let us lift up our hearts.

-Photios Kontoglou (†1965) letter to Dr. Cavarnos dated 5/10/57

QUOTE

"Psychopaths are a superior subspecies. We transcend humanity. We are Nature's Supermen. We deserve the subservience and availability of everyone around us. Luckily, every year 100-million people are born throughout the world. We have 100-million new choices every year."

-Sam Vaknin, self-realized psychopath

QUOTE

Our Saviour placed the Church in the world in order to save the world, and Satan is always trying to place the world into the Church in order to destroy the Church.

attributed to Desert Fathers

QUOTE

"If you see lying and hypocrisy, expose them in front of all, even if they are clothed inpurple and fine linen."

Metropolitan Anastasy (Gribanovsky) of New York (1906)

HALL OF SHAME

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